In this column from the American Election Mail, our journalists answer questions from our readers. To subscribe, click here.
How can we understand the considerable support that Donald Trump continues to enjoy among the population despite his violent remarks, his sexism, his racism, his lies, his criminality, etc.?
In the political and media climate of the United States, there is a “perfect storm for a candidate like Donald Trump,” believes Karine Prémont, professor of applied politics at the University of Sherbrooke.
According to the political scientist, one of the explanations for Donald Trump’s continued success is “white identity anxiety.” “By 2050, white people are expected to be a minority in the United States. So some people are a little worried about losing their privileges,” she explains.
“In a certain segment of the white population, generally people who are more disadvantaged or who are in the lower middle class, there is a feeling that the Democratic Party has been less interested in them for some time, that it is only interested in minorities,” adds the professor. This would explain why a part of the American population is “attracted to a character like Trump, who does not hesitate to point the finger at visible minorities, sexual minorities and immigrants for all of America’s problems.”
The director of the Raoul-Dandurand Chair’s Geopolitics Observatory, Élisabeth Vallet, points out that there is a nuance to be made when talking about “considerable support from the population.” “Polls often tell us about a fraction of voters who can vote,” which is not representative of the entire population. “If we forget the idea that it is considerable, there is indeed still support,” she notes.
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Media coverage
For Christophe Cloutier-Roy, deputy director of the Raoul-Dandurand Chair’s Observatory on the United States, although there are “several” reasons that explain the support for Donald Trump, there are two main ones: the media coverage he receives from more conservative media and the type of politician he is.
“All the more negative aspects that we tend to see, the violence, the sexism, the crime, all of that, are much less highlighted in conservative coverage,” he explains. This coverage “presents it in a much more positive light than you might get in more liberal media.”
The way we consume information is also nowadays “so diverse that we no longer have major television channels that will broadcast things in a more or less objective way because they control each other,” adds Élisabeth Vallet. Social media as a source of information also leads to “a silo effect where we have less critical perspective on things.”
Another aspect to note, according to Mr. Cloutier-Roy: Donald Trump is “an extraordinary politician” who “knows how to use insults and attacks more traditional establishments.” Which “speaks a lot to disaffected voters who do not necessarily recognize themselves in the new cultural and political elites of the country, or who may be uncomfortable with changes within society,” summarizes the expert on American domestic politics.
Mr. Trump made history last May by becoming the first former president of the United States to be found guilty at the end of a criminal trial. A conviction that has no major repercussions, says Karine Prémont.
“Trump’s base of supporters thinks it’s a plot by Democrats,” the professor points out. “The fact that he was found guilty is not serious to them. It has no effect on these people because they think he is being persecuted.”